McCain facing game of fundraising catch-up

As of end of April, Obama has more than double the cash on hand of McCain

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- One of the first things visitors to John McCain's web site see is a plea from the Arizona senator for money to help him with his presidential bid. An identical plea greets visitors to Sen. Barack Obama's web site. But if past is prolog, the burden is going to be on McCain to match Obama's formidable fundraising skills as the two men head into an already-historic election season.

As of the end of April, the latest date for which both campaigns' figures are available, Illinois Sen. Obama had more than double the cash on hand that McCain did, $46.5 million to McCain's $21.7 million. Figures for May are due from the Federal Election Commission later this month, though McCain's campaign said Friday that he ended the month with $31.5 million on hand.

Chances are that the presumed Democratic candidate will outgun the probable Republican candidate again during May. McCain raised a total of $90.5 million through the end of April, according to FEC data. But Obama, a first-term senator relatively unknown until recently, has raked in nearly triple that amount in the months he's been campaigning. Through April, Obama has taken in $265.4 million.

Obama has built his coffers without money from federal lobbyists or political action committees. On Thursday, moreover, he said that the Democratic National Committee would play by the same rules.

"The Democratic National Committee will uphold the same standard and won't take another dime from Washington lobbyists or special interest PACs. They do not fund my campaign. They will not fund our party," Obama said.

McCain's campaign accepts donations from both lobbyists and PACs, a spokesman said Friday.

Meanwhile, as the general election campaign kicked off this week, McCain made a record cash haul for May, his campaign said. McCain's campaign pulled in $21.5 million for the month, the biggest single-month take to date. Combined with funds raised by the Republican National Committee, McCain's campaign ended May with $31.5 million on hand. The RNC had $53.6 million in the bank as of the end of May, according to a report in Friday's New York Times. An RNC spokesperson wasn't immediately available to confirm the amount.

Money helps, but the message is what sells

Rich Galen, a Republican strategist and former spokesman for onetime House Speaker Newt Gingrich, agrees that it's preferable to have more money than one's opponent. But, he says, having less money isn't as great a handicap as it might appear.

"It's the application of the available money in the battleground states that will make the difference," says Galen. "As long as you have enough to be in the game, then the message matters more than the money."

McCain is currently running ahead of Obama in battleground states Michigan and Virginia, while Obama is taking the lead in Pennsylvania, Ohio and Wisconsin, according to RealClearPolitics.

Obama has raised more money than McCain in all of those states, according to FEC data. The only state of those five in which McCain is close to Obama is Michigan, where Obama's name wasn't on the ballot in the Democratic primary and he didn't campaign. In Michigan, McCain has raised $1.7 million compared to Obama's $1.9 million. But Obama has outrun McCain in the other states by wide margins, raking in $5.9 million in Virginia, for example, to McCain's $3.5 million.

Obama's greatest challenge to McCain in the fundraising arena is his ability to draw money from small donors.

Obama has raised four times as much money from small donors as has McCain, taking in $122 million in donations of $200-and-under since the campaign began. McCain, by contrast, has raked in only $28 million from that donor category. McCain does best with the biggest donors, those contributing $2,000 and more. In that category, the Arizona senator has brought in $38.3 million to date. But Obama still beats him, having received $64.5 million from big donors.

As the general election campaign gets going, meanwhile, McCain's wasting no time hitting the road looking for money.

There are at least five fundraising events scheduled for McCain over the next week, in locations including Washington, New York and Hartford, Conn.

Intraday Data provided by SIX Financial Information and subject to terms of use.
Historical and current end-of-day data provided by SIX Financial Information. Intraday data
delayed per exchange requirements. S&P/Dow Jones Indices (SM) from Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
All quotes are in local exchange time. Real time last sale data provided by NASDAQ. More
information on NASDAQ traded symbols and their current financial status. Intraday
data delayed 15 minutes for Nasdaq, and 20 minutes for other exchanges. S&P/Dow Jones Indices (SM)
from Dow Jones & Company, Inc. SEHK intraday data is provided by SIX Financial Information and is
at least 60-minutes delayed. All quotes are in local exchange time.